Tax Cuts - Income Tax Calculator

I just found a very useful resource:

http://www.mytaxburden.org/

Just in case you are not aware: In 2001 and 2003, under the former Bush administration, there were important tax cuts.

They will expire very soon. And a decision must be taken by Congress on either keeping the tax cuts, or eliminating them totally or partially.

The Obama administration is proposing keeping the tax cuts for families earning less than $250,000 a year.
On this website you can quickly calculate how their decision could affect you. There are 3 case scenarios:
1) All tax cuts remain.
2) All tax cuts expire and are not renewed.
3) Tax cuts remain only for the middle class (income of less than $250,000 per year).

Can I wish you to make less than $250,000 next year? Don't know yet.

Good Luck. And don't be afraid to become a millionaire!

Henry B. Nathan is a Florida Realtor at United Realty Group Inc.
Visit my website: http://www.condo-southflorida.com
where you can search for Aventura Condos, Florida Condos, Sunny Isles Condos,

Hallandale Beach: you're not alone

We're not alone.

Traffic cameras syndrome is spreading fast. And people's reaction too.
Authoritative government and abusive over-taxation used to impose bureaucrats will, must have a limit. This is my humble opinion at least...

I'm glad that I am not the only one worrying about police departments peeping in every little thing we do in life. The law must be respected, but let's not forget that we make the law and the law should be oriented to increase the quality of our life, not the quantity of our misery.

From "TheNewspaper.com" - Monday, July 19, 2010

Ohio: Voters In Two More Cities Poised To Ban Traffic Cameras

A pair of Cuyahoga County, Ohio cities are likely to have a public vote on banning red light cameras and speed cameras in November. A sufficient number of residents in Garfield Heights and South Euclid signed a referendum petition that organizers expect to turn in this week, as early as today. Once approved, these municipalities will join Anaheim, California; Baytown and Houston, Texas; and Mukilteo, Washington in voting on the future of cameras on November 2.

Cuyahoga County for Liberty (CC4L) coordinated the signature gathering effort in conjunction with the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST) which successfully built a coalition to defeat Cincinnati's red light cameras in 2008. CC4L Chairman Grant McCallum explained the reason his group decided to fight the cameras in South Euclid.

"It's clearly an overreach of government, as far as I'm concerned," McCallum told TheNewspaper. "It's a way for local governments to extract money from their citizens. It has nothing to do with safety."

City leaders hope to deploy speed cameras and mount cameras on school buses to issue expensive citations. McCallum says he has more than 500 signatures in hand -- double the 251 required to force the vote.

His most successful tactic has been to direct traffic into a drive-thru petition signing area in parking lots that allow supporters to quickly and conveniently register. McCallum says the support has been tremendous.

"Everyone sees this as just a money-grab -- a scam," McCallum said. "Some people are concerned about Big Brother and electronic surveillance, but the majority of people understand it's just another way for the city to make money.... The support is across all the political spectrum."

Garfield Heights has also lined up more than enough signatures. So far, 2300 have said that they want a vote to end cameras, even though only 875 signatures are needed. Once on the ballot, Ohio voters have always approved bans on cameras. Last November Chillicothe and Heath voted to ban them -- with 72 percent of voters in the latter city rejecting automated ticketing. In 2008, residents in Cincinnati, Ohio rejected red light cameras. Seventy-six percent of Steubenville, Ohio voters rejected photo radar in 2006.

Elsewhere, 61 percent of Sykesville, Maryland voters overturned a speed camera ordinance earlier this year.
In 2009, eighty-six percent of Sulphur, Louisiana rejected speed cameras. College Station, Texas also rejected cameras. In the mid-1990s, speed cameras lost by a two-to-one margin in Peoria, Arizona and Batavia, Illinois. In 1997, voters in Anchorage, Alaska banned cameras even after the local authorities had removed them.

Henry B. Nathan is a Florida Realtor at United Realty Group Inc.

Visit my website: http://www.condo-southflorida.com

where you can search for Aventura Condos, Florida Condos, Sunny Isles Condos

More conflicts between buyers and developers

Buyer goes after Related assets in condo lawsuit

A Coral Gables law firm is seeking to garnish Related Group assets for failing to pay a condo depositor despite a Miami-Dade Circuit judge’s order.

The company was ordered to pay Rafael Maldonado $16,388 after Circuit Judge Jon I. Gordon sided with the would-be buyer, who demanded the return of a portion of his down payment after he failed to close on the condo under a 2005 contract. Maldonado’s attorneys, Robert G. Post and Carlos A. Romero with Post & Romero, say it’s a story they’ve heard too frequently since the housing market crashed: a developer engaging in delaying tactics and not returning deposits.

The funds remain in an escrow under the control of Chicago Title Insurance. Romero said the company will not release the funds without authorization from Related. Romero’s firm filed a motion for a writ of garnishment against the company Monday. Escrow account managers at Chicago Title’s Florida offices did not return calls for comment before deadline. Although the April 13 judgment does not state when the funds should be paid, Romero cites a state law that allows for collection on the judgment after 10 days if the defense doesn’t post bond or seek an appeal. Monday was the 27th day.

“It seems to me that if the developer just wanted to pay, it would have done so in 2009 without making an innocent party jump so many hoops unnecessarily. These delay tactics continue to be seen and felt by innocent buyers,” Romero said.

He said the developer’s in-house counsel, Elizabeth E.S. Hollander, is now coming up with reasons to justify delaying payment. “This in-house counsel took the position that they had a ‘reasonable amount’ of time to pay the judgment,” Romero wrote in an e-mail Monday. “The judgment neither reflects nor provides for postponement of payment for any time, let alone a reasonable period of time.” Hollander, Related’s assistant associate general counsel, argues the judge’s order could be interpreted to allow the company to disburse funds at a later time, according to an e-mail provided by Post & Romero. Hollander declined comment.

The company’s lead attorney in the case, Related vice president and associate general counsel Betsy McCoy, did not return calls by deadline. The final judgment ordered the company to pay Maldonado a portion of his deposit. He put down $59,780 on a $298,900 unit on the 11th floor of the Arquitectonica-designed 500 Brickell West Tower condominium. Gordon ordered Related to return 25 percent of the deposit plus interest as required by the purchase contract. When Maldonado found the unit in 2005, the Puerto Rican attorney thought it was a perfect fit.

He was looking for a small condo near the heart of the city, a place to stay during short visits to see his mother and sister. The one-bedroom unit was just a few steps from the gym, on the same floor as the swimming pool and had a sunset-view balcony. When the housing bubble burst, the condo lost value, and Maldonado — who represents developers — decided to pull out of the deal and keep a portion of the deposit. “The worst part is they sold the apartment to someone else, and they haven’t paid me my miserable 25 percent.

I’m losing a considerable amount of money,” Maldonado said Tuesday. “I’ve been dealing with canceling this for over a year now.” Related, which uses the motto “Redefining cities and skylines” on its Web site, was one of Miami’s most prolific condo builders during the boom years and became a national leader in the industry.

Like many other developers, Related went into contraction mode, recently pulling out as a partner in the Trump Towers luxury condo in Sunny Isles Beach.

Henry B. Nathan is a Florida Realtor at United Realty Group Inc.
Visit my website: GoldenIsles-homes.com
where you can search for Golden Isles Real Estate

Listings & Sales at The Beach Club Condos - Hallandale -

REPORT

LISTINGS AND SALES ACTIVITY AT THE BEACH CLUB CONDOS IN HALLANDALE

As of: June 29, 2009

BEACH CLUB ONE CONDOS

BEACH CLUB ONE Units available for sale: 54

Studios and One-bedroom - 4 units – Priced from $360,000 to $600,000

2 bedroom – 13 units – Priced from $335,000 to $729,000

More than 2 bedroom – 37 units – Priced from $425,000 to $1,775,000

Least expensive available: Unit 409 – 1,082 Sq.Ft. - $ 335,000

Most expensive available: Unit 4405 – 2500 Sq.Ft. - $ 1,775,000

BEACH CLUB ONE CONDOS sold in the last 90 days: 8 units from $290,000 to $720,000

*****

BEACH CLUB TWO CONDOS

BEACH CLUB TWO Units available for sale: 66

Studios and One-bedroom – 13 units - Priced from $200,000 to $467,000

Two-bedroom – 23 Units – Priced from $539,000 to $1,500,000

More than 2 bedroom – 30 Units – Priced from $649,000 to $2,000,000

Least expensive available: Unit 2705 – 800 Sq. Ft. - $ 250,000 (SHORT SALE)

Most expensive available: Town House – 4,020 Sq. Ft. - $ 2,000,000

BEACH CLUB TWO CONDOS sold in the last 90 days: 11 Units from $237,000 to $900,000

***

BEACH CLUB THREE CONDOS

BEACH CLUB THREE units available for sale: 77

Studios and One-bedroom – 9 units – Priced from $280,000 to $467,000

Two-bedroom – 22 Units – Priced from $328,000 to $1,250,000

More than 2 bedroom - 46 Units – Priced from $359,000 to $1,799,000

Least expensive available: Unit 2906 – 1,086 Sq.Ft. - $280,000

Most expensive available: Penthouse 4404 – 2548 Sq.Ft Living area – 5,008 Sq. Ft. total area - $ 1,799,000

BEACH CLUB THREE CONDOS sold in the last 90 days: 9 Units from $295,000 to $600,000

***

Our remarks:

28 total SALES have closed in the last 90 days at the Beach Club complex

This is an average of 0,311 closing per day at the Beach Club Condos complex

197 total Active listings at the Beach Club: as of June 29, 2009

Total of apartments at the Beach Club Condominum Complex (All three buildings): 1,258

Percentage of Beach Club Condo Units on the market: 15.66%

Henry B. Nathan is a Florida Realtor at United Realty Group Inc. and a Florida Licensed Mortgage Broker.

Visit my website: http://www.condo-southflorida.com/

where you can search for Hallandale Beach Condos, Sunny Isles Condos